According to news reports, Vice President Joe Biden said there’s no reason that people should need to own an assault weapon.

The Vice President was taking part in a Facebook Town Hall hosted by Parents magazine, and took a handful of questions from readers about gun violence. One question cited a well worn right wing talking point, mewing how gun owners would be unable to protect themselves if Congress passed a bill banning certain weapons and high-capacity gun magazines.

“Kate, if you want to protect yourself, get a double barreled shotgun,” the Vice President responded. “I promise you, as I told my wife, we live in an area that’s wooded and somewhat secluded. I said, Jill, if there’s ever a problem, just walk out on the balcony here, walk out, put [up] that double barreled shotgun and fire two blasts outside the house.”

“You don’t need an AR-15,” he said. “Buy a shotgun! Buy a shotgun!”

The Vice President also said he doesn’t support making changes to the Second Amendment and described America’s “really healthy gun culture,” which was a “part of my father’s ethic.” He clarified to another questioner that nobody wants to take away people’s guns.

“I have two shotguns at home,” he said. “No one is going to come and take my guns.”

OK, thank you Mr. Vice President, will it make any difference with right wing gun fanatics? No it won’t. However, facts are a shot gun is the best possible weapon for home defense; an assault rifles muzzle velocity makes it an extremely dangerous weapon in the home, as it can send a round through multiple walls and possibly into your neighbor’s house or out into the street, putting a lot of innocent people at risk, whereas a shotgun’s ammo will not do that, while combing excellent stopping power in the confined space of a home. No it’s not as glamorous, but what do you want, glam or stopping power? Do you want to look cool, or stop an intruder? You don’t need assault rifles or high capacity magazines to protect your home from an intruder, and you’re not going to fight off the imagined “guvmint” bad guys either; this isn’t 1775 – ever heard of drones?

It seems the Magnolia State’s lawmakers have finally pulled their collective heads out of their fourth point of contact and officially ratified the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which banned slavery in 1865. Congratulations.

Maybe now you can come to grips with the fact you lost the war and get around to removing the “Stars and Bars” from your state flag?